SEA Games 31: GM Son grabs gold in standard chess

He beat 11 rivals to triumph in the men’s standard chess category with seven points after nine matches.

In the last game, Son defeated Lye Lik Zang of Malaysia after 39 moves.

The victory helped the Vietnamese player retain the No 1 position in the men's group, contributing to fulfilling the Vietnamese chess team's goal of achieving five golds in 10 events at the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31).

The silver and bronze medals in this category went to Ervan Mohamad of Indonesia and Tin Jingyao of Singapore, respectively.

On the women’s group, Citra Dewi Ardhiani Anastasia and Sukandar Irine Kharisma of Indonesia took gold and silver medals. The bronze medal went to Vietnamese Hoang Thi Bao Tram.

Chess players will continue with individual men’s and women’s fast chess events on May 16 and 17. GM Son will take part in rapid chess competitions for men together with Le Quang Liem while his wife Pham Le Thao Nguyen and Bach Ngoc Thuy Duong will play rapid chess matches for women. Great expectation has been placed on GM Le Quang Liem - the No. 1 "seed" in the men's group at the Games, who just had a historic victory over the world "chess king" Magnus Carlsen at the Oslo Esports Cup 2022 held at the end of April in Norway.